Congo

Congo is a name shared by two neighbouring countries in Africa, usually distinguished either by using their full official names or adding their capitals:

• The Republic of the Congo is often known as "Congo-Brazzaville". It is the smaller of the two and lies to the west in West Africa. It was once a French colony and part of French Equatorial Africa.

• The Democratic Republic of the Congo is sometimes known as "Congo-Kinshasa". It is the larger of the two and lies to the east in Central Africa. It was once a Belgian colony known as Congo Free State and Belgian Congo, depending on the period. It was named Zaire from 1971 to 1997 (during which time the other Congo could simply be called Congo without modifier).

Congo is also the name of:

• Congo craton, a pre-historical continent.
• The Congo or Kongo Kingdom, which was once under Portuguese "protection" during part of its existence.
• The Congo River, which drains both the above-mentioned countries.
• The basin of the Congo River. The Congo and its subsidiaries run through the second largest rain forest area in the world, with only the Amazon Rainforest being (much) larger. (see: Congo River basin ).
• In Vodun, a rather dull and lazy spirit was named Congo.
• A novel by Michael Crichton; see Congo (novel).
• A movie based on Crichton's novel; see Congo (movie).
• A genre of Afro-American music in Panama and Brazil; see congo music and dance
• An alternate term for the genre of music more commonly known as soukous.